


Cloudy With a Chance of Premature Greying

by mobilisinmobili



Series: Life's Super Problems and Solutions [4]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Accidents, Action/Adventure, Avengers Family, Domestic Avengers, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Irondad, Mental Breakdown, Past Abuse, Pranks and Practical Jokes, Protectiveness, Teamwork, Teenagers, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Torture, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-29
Updated: 2018-05-19
Packaged: 2019-04-14 13:22:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 13,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14136894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mobilisinmobili/pseuds/mobilisinmobili
Summary: 5 times Peter caused Tony to prematurely grey and the one time that he fixed It (sort of…)





	1. One Phone Call

“Okay, so I can explain…!” 

Tony just stared, arms crossed defensively against his chest as he sat back on the cold steel chair across from Peter.

It wasn't even 5 in the morning yet, but there he was sitting in an interrogation room inside the NYPD headquarters for a reason he did not know, and he low key hoped  _ not  _ to find out. 

\--

He'd been working late in his lab all week burning through the late night and early morning before deciding on calling in and taking the day off for some rest and much needed sleep. 

He’d go to sleep and wake up sometime in the afternoon and have himself some coffee, maybe order some pizza and genuinely laze about doing nothing. 

It sounded  _ amazing _ . 

So with the plan cemented in his mind, he shut down his lab and padded his way to his room before crawling on to the beyond perfect memory foam bed, sliding himself under the thick fluffy duvet. 

He was positive he nearly shed a tear from the utter beauty of it all. And within a few minutes of his internal bed appreciation monologue he passed out. 

\-- 

“-ir. Sir?” the lights flicked on all at once, flooding the cool darkness with an obnoxious amount of  _ too bright  _ fluorescent light.

And then someone was shaking him, swatting at his face none too gently. 

“Wh-?” he managed to mumble, squinting against the lights from mostly under the duvet. 

“Nat?” 

“Get up. It's an emergency.” she wasted no time in snatching the duvet away leaving Tony to shiver blearily half awake and definitely  _ not  _ feeling it. 

But he sat up nonetheless. 

It wasn't every day that Natasha made personal visits to warn him about some sort of emergency.

Hell, it was the first time ever, actually. 

That did the trick, shooting a necessary amount of adrenalin through his veins as he realized that something was  _ very  _ wrong. 

“What happened?” he stumbled out of bed reaching for a pair of jeans and the hoodie he'd thrown off sometime before passing out. 

“Just hurry up. And don't forget your keys.” she ordered, leaving Tony to stumble after.

\---

She was waiting in the garage looking more than calm and collected as opposed to Tony’s harried form as he jogged out of the elevator, unlocking the car door as he did. 

They both slid in without much sound, buckled up and sped out into the offsetting darkness. 

“Where exactly as we going?” Tony asked as the left the complex, speeding onto the empty roads towards the city. 

“NYPD” She answered shortly. 

There was a beat of silence as he glanced over to the dashboard to see what time it was, and then immediately regretted the decision. 

“I only got to sleep like 40 minutes, Nat. You're gonna have to give me more than that…” 

“They gave him two calls cause he's a minor.” 

The change in body language and expression was immediate as he squeezed the steering wheel a little tighter than absolutely necessary.

“He called?” 

“He called you first, but you didn't pick up so he called me.” 

“Is he alright?” Nat didn't miss the growing worry in his voice. 

“He's fine. Just a bit shaken up.” 

Tony let out a small sigh of relief as they sped towards their destination in silence. 

\--

“Hello, are you Peter Parker’s guardian?” the officer at the front desk asked, sliding a clipboard with a few documents. 

Tony simply nodded, taking the board into his hands to start filling them out. 

“And after you finish those forms you can go see him. He's in interrogation room number 3.” 

Tony nodded again as he scribbled past all of the questions in an impatient scrawl. 

He was finished in minutes, promptly handing the clipboard back, itching to move towards the room.

The officer understood and pointed them towards the room, reminding them that the interrogation room was audio and visually monitored at all times.

Nat nodded, putting on her mom friendly smile as she thanked the officer for the help. 

And without a single glance back, they marched themselves swiftly over to interrogation room 3. 

Tony didn't bother knocking, choosing instead to throw the door open causing Peter to jump. Natasha followed, shutting the door quietly behind her.

“There better be a damn good reason for this, Peter.” he stated, parking himself across the table on one of the cold hard metal chairs. 

Nat sat too, expression unreadable as she stared, dissecting what pieces of the situation she could find to figure out just why Peter had been arrested. 

Or more importantly, why Peter was not at home in his bed resting and recovering from the horrible fever that had taken hold of the boy yesterday morning. 

Bruce would want to have a word after this whole debacle…

But there he was, sitting there in a long sleeve SI shirt and jeans. Not at all appropriate for the winter weather outside. Nat was positive it was below freezing at the moment, which made the view all the more worrisome. 

But the cherry on top was the slightly fuzzy out of focus look in Peter's eyes. 

“He looks so high right now…” Nat muttered to Tony who couldn't help but agree. 

He knew that Bruce was trying to figure out just how fast Peter's metabolism and healing powers were when he realized that normal medicine didn't really work the right way in the regular doses. 

That had led to small experiments with various different medicines which yielded the following results; just triple everything.

And that had been the rule for Peter at almost all of the clinicals. But something was definitely different about this situation. 

Bruce had given him a triple dose of a night time fever reducer which, at most, should have made the kid sleepy. But this was something else…

He was swaying in his seat almost like he was balancing himself in attempts to not completely fall off, not to mention his slowly fluttering eyes.

Hed looked almost confused when the two had barged in, staring glassy eyed at the two before grinning. Tony could tell the moment Peter opened his mouth. 

“You guys came! Best guardians ever!” Peter cheered with a small “Whoo!” before catching home of on the table before he nearly toppled himself over. 

They were saved by a knock on the door which was opened by an officer who shut the door quietly behind him. 

“You two must be Peter’s guardians.” it wasn't a question, and neither of the two had the will to correct him. 

“Now, we're not going to file any offenses or anything like that” Tony sucked in a breath.

“However, we strongly advise against doing anything like this again.” he shot Peter a pointed look. 

“From what I can see, the boy’s not completely in his right mind at the moment. The best course of action would be to take him home and let him sleep it off.” 

Tony could practically feel the relief in his arc reactor from those words alone. 

“What exactly did he do?” Nat had the semblance of mind to ask. 

“Well, we caught him trying to get into one of the classrooms at his school around 2AM. Apparently he left his calculus book at school and needed it for homework.” It would have been funny if they didn't know that Peter had probably done that out of serious intent to actual get his book so he'd be actually be able to finish his homework…

In the end it was decided there was no harm done and they were let out after filling out numerous forms and promising that this would never ever happen again, which he would  _ personally  _ Make sure of. 

They'd sit down and have a serious conversation about priorities, that was definitely not gonna change, but for now Tony’s number 1 priority was to get his high as a kite teenager back home in bed tucked in all warm to continue his feverish rest and recoup. 

Natasha just smirked as Tony hauled the newly dozing teen out towards the door. 

“You know, grey hair on you night not be that bad.” 

Tony stopped briefly sending Natasha a bemused look before turning back and making his way out. 

She followed behind, sending a nod of thanks to the officer.

\---

“It suits you, kinda. Make a you look more like a dad” it was said nonchalantly as Tony was upping the car to around 95 mph.

Needless to say, he was very  _ very  _ glad that there weren't any other cars on the road because for one moment he felt very definitely winded…

The rest of the drive home was in peace and quiet, giving him time to fully accept and understand what had happened today, and he was certain of two things.

First and foremost, he'd just take the rest of the week off and just sleep for a day or two, laziness be damned. 

And second, maybe  _ maybe  _ grey wasn't so bad after all….

 


	2. Felix 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> This chapter is gonna be split into 2 parts~  
> Also, for this story(and the whole series) Peter is 17 going on 18

In the end it was Bucky who had sealed the deal, albeit unknowingly, much to Peter's immense joy.

“YES!” 

He'd practically spun himself out of the dangerously wobbling spinny chair in haste to  tackle  hug the bewildered man who froze, eyes wide open and looking to Steve to help him out of the sudden entrapment. 

Steve in turn glanced over at Tony to find the man suddenly looking ten times more tired than he had before he’d walked into the meeting, which was saying a lot because he was  _ still  _ recovering from the Nyquil incident.

“Peter, sweetheart, I need you to come and sign some of these papers before tomorrow’s trip” Bucky breathed a sigh of relief as slender manicured fingers pried the  _ far  _ too excited teen off of one bewildered Bucky Barnes who immediately slunk over to sit on the empty seat next to Natasha.  

“He’s currently grounded.”

Pepper sent him a thin smile. 

“I am quite aware. You’ve still haven’t turned in the last of the paperwork for the NYPD yet either” she shot back. 

“As for the house lock down” she highlighted yet another space for the teen to sign

“It’s gonna have to wait. You know you can’t just leave him here during the cleaning.” 

“Pfff. He has a room. He’s practically got a whole suite.” Tony crossed his arms defensively. 

Pepper rolled her eyes as she highlighted a few more signature spots. 

“Coulson  _ clearly  _ said that the whole complex has to be  _ completely  _ cleared, Tony. He’s been saying this for the past month now.” 

“And technically, he’s a part of the team, at least on paper” Cap nodded. 

Tony shot him a betrayed glare. 

“Fury said he wanted Peter to attend at least one international meeting, might as well have him attend this one” Natasha broke in.

Pepper hummed in agreement. 

“And he turns 18 in three days, Tony. We won’t be able to celebrate it if he’s here all alone.” Nat continued, fixing a surprisingly good set of puppy dog eyes on Stark, who was trying his best not to look. 

“Yeah, Tony. You can’t just abandon him on his  _ birthday _ of all days. That’s just cruel…” Bruce added in agreement. 

‘Okay! Okay. No one is abandoning anyone.” he spluttered. “Fine. Peter, you are ungrounded until we get back next Tuesday.” 

Peter jumped, punching the air in a victorious salute, excitement very nearly easing the memory of last Saturday night out of Tony’s mind with a heartwarming feeling. 

“But. BUT!” Peter parked himself back on the chair, hands clasped in a show of remarkably good behavior. 

“Since you won’t actually be running sims with the team, you’re gonna stay at Strange’s place.” 

Peter nodded fervently. 

“We’ll celebrate Thursday, but till then you’re on like probation or something.” 

Peter nodded again, slower this time, slowly morphing into a hand raised into a question. 

“Yes, Peter?” 

*“Umm, who.. is this….Strange?” he said it with a small shrug of his shoulders and a wince. 

“You'll see…” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *I forget... Has Spiderman met Strange?? Has anyone other than Thor met him for that matter?


	3. Felix 2

“But to be completely fair, I didn't  _ kidnap _ him.  _ He  _ followed  _ me. _ ” Strange didn't even warrant that comment a reply, leveling Peter with a  _ severely  _ bemused glare. 

“A-and, he almost died. I couldn't just  _ leave  _ him there.” 

The man’s frown deepened as he continued observing the scene in front of him as a distinctly bizarre feeling began to grow in his gut. 

Of  _ course  _ this would happen. This was something connected to Stark after all... 

Strange took a deep breath, trying to calm himself before he did something he'd regret. 

“I understand the sentiment-” he paused, choosing his words carefully. 

“But-” he narrowed his eyes in suspicion as Peter scooted his seat closer to the table, eyes wide in what he could only assume was puppy dog eyes. Puppy dog eyes that were  _ certainly  _ not working.

Not working.

Not-

No- damn it….

Strange sighed, rubbing at his temples before caving in. 

“Alright, alright. But he can't stay inside the house.” Peter nodded enthusiastically. 

“And it goes back the moment Stark get back.” 

Peter wasn't even listening at that point, too busy picking the penguin off of the table and lowering him gently onto the wood floor. 

“You don't have to worry about a thing, Mr. Strange!” 

“Doctor.” 

“Doctor Strange!” 

Strange in turn took several other deep breaths, internally debating on calling Tony to inform him of the events that had unfolded within the past three hours.

He decided to just save it for later.

“I promise I'll stay by the house.” Peter rambled on, breaking Strange’s line of thought, absolutely enthralling the hyped up albeit confused penguin who he was leading around in circles big and small.

“Stay by the house. Don't go anywhere. Don't touch anything, and if anything happens,  _ anything,  _ you call me immediately.” 

Peter nodded, still walking circles with the penguin. 

“His name's gonna be Felix. He looks like a Felix.” Peter nodded to himself. 

“Alright, let's go!” The penguin let out a shrill squawk before picking up his waddling speed as he followed Peter out of Strange’s study and down the stairs(which Peter kindly hauled the surprisingly heavy penguin down) to the main hall and then out the door into the warm London streets. 

\---

Strange turned away from the large window overlooking the street. 

As much as he wanted to do his best in what Tony had requested of him, even he had to admit that it wouldn't be right to suppress the kid. He was turning 18 very soon after all. 

And as much as Tony had  _ insisted  _ on having to keep eyes on the kid, Strange couldn't help but disagree. Apart from the little incident with the location changing window and the penguin, he could see that Peter was a good kid who wasn't the type to go looking for trouble(must unlike a certain genius he knew). 

So with one last glance back to check to see that both the penguin and Parker were still hovering around the area, he returned to his seat at the large dark wood table and began flipping through one of the many spell books scattered around.  They'd gotten through five hours already, with a couple more hours left, Strange was confident that nothing else would go wrong. 

\---

“Peter? Hey bud. I'm back.” Strange heard the door shut as he made his way out of his study towards the voice in the front hall.

“Did you not see him outside?” 

“No…?” 

Tony narrowed his eyes suspiciously. 

“Should he be outside?”

“He was.”

“Was, but now he's not.” 

“...”

Stark took a deep breath, counting to ten before saying another word. 

“So he's not outside and he's probably not in here, so where is He?” 

“Good question.” 

“Are you serious right now?” 

“He's almost 18 Tony. He was fine a few hours ago. Promised not to stray too far. He's probably in the area.” 

Strange descended the staircase quickly, reaching for his cloak that flew down to him. 

“He's a teenager, Steven!” 

“I'm well aware.” 

“A  _ teenager.  _ As in, he does stupid things all the time. Doesn't think things through.” 

“I  _ know.  _ He reminded me a bit of someone.” Strange shot Tony a bemused look. 

“Excu- you know WHAT? Don't have time for this right now. This conversation is  _ not  _ over.” Tony marched over to the door, already calling the suit towards his location.

“Once we find Peter we'll go and get some dinner or something. And then we'll finish this up” he yanked the door open, doing a double take as Peter all but fell onto him as his body followed his hand that was clamped around the door knob. 

Strange’s brow shot up as the picture unfolded in front of them. 

One  _ very  _ tipsy looking Peter Parker wearing a neon green feather boa and an obnoxiously festive party hat. That was just the tip of the iceberg. 

While one hand was clamped around the door handle, the other held a rather large plastic tiki cup with a neon blue fun loopy straw and a paper umbrella and a length of red ribbon that was tied to his wrist. Tony followed the ribbon to come up with a blank of disbelief. The ribbon that was tied on Peter’s wrist with a bow connected to one agitated looking penguin that had red ribbon tied around his middle with a decently cute ribbon in the very front. 

He squawked loudly, pecking at Peter’s thigh. 

‘M baaaaack!” he lurched forward, shaking off some loose confetti onto the dark hardwood flooring of the front hall. 

“C’mon f’lex. We gotta hurry b-aff-before Tony gets back.” He patted the penguin gently on the head before stumbling a few steps further into the room. 

Tony took one last look at Peter and then Strange before closing the door, just in time to see Peter turn suddenly, almost losing his balance as he redirected his hazy focus on Strange. 

“m real l-...really sorry. Made some new f-friends.” he patted Strange on the shoulder. “But s’all good. Got back in one shape...no wait.. one-o-one piece!” he almost fell over from the light bulb moment. 

“Does this happen a lot?” Tony sighed rubbing at his tired eyes. 

*”It's not the first time….” he walked over to the  _ obviously  _ drunk teen and pried the tiki cup from his hand, took a sip and winced.

“come on.” he dragged the boy off of Strange who was holding him so he wouldn't completely slump to the floor. 

“Watch his neck.” 

“Will do, doctor.” 

Strange’s eyes narrowed momentarily before helping Tony guide the semi conscious teen(and his penguin) over to the living room. 

Once they'd gotten him seated on a fluffy sofa Tony gave him a few taps, just to make sure he was still alive(he could never really see the color blue in the same way after the last incident…) 

Peter jerked awake, startling everyone and the penguin. 

“Tony! You're back!” 

“I am.”

Peter nodded, humming to himself, eyes closing once more  before he jerked, suddenly patting all over to try and find something. 

“If you're looking for the penguin, he's over there.” Strange nodded to a little armchair in the corner where Felix was nestled between a few cushions, red ribbon still dragging on the floor. 

“Uh, yeah. What the fuck Peter?” 

Peter chuckled, and then burst into a full fledged bout of laughter. 

Tony narrowed his eyes, peering into the tiki cup once more. 

“Deja vu. ‘member?” he was gasping for breath and hitting Tony several times on the arm as he recalled a certain memory in his alcohol induced haze. 

“T- the. Bruce.” 

“Banner?” Strange shot Tony a curious look. Tony in turn shook his head fervently, paling ever so slightly. 

“member? The coyote? He was hilarious!” 

“I do, I do. That resulted in a 900 dollar speeding ticket.” 

Peter froze momentarily before cracking up again. 

Tony rolled his eyes and Strange just couldn't help but stare. 

\---

“You don't think dragging your drunk teen son out to dinner is a bad idea?” Strange took a sip of his beer. 

Tony shrugged nudging Peter lightly. 

“What say you, my little spider son?” 

Peter just groaned, staring listlessly into his cola. 

“Drinking’s not so fun when you have superhuman metabolism is it.” 

Peter nodded. 

Tony ruffled his hair. 

“That's right. So what are we gonna do, Peter?” 

Peter mumbled something under his breath.

“I'm sorry, couldn't hear that. Come again?” 

“Stay away from alcohol.” he repeated louder this time.

Tony smiled. 

“That's right. And I expect all that salad to be gone too.” Peter nodded. 

“And another thing” 

“Hmm?”

“If Nat or Thor give you anything tomorrow, to drink, just say no” Peter nodded fervently before wincing. 

He'd  _ definitely  _ stay away from alcohol.

\---

Pepper was the one waiting for them in the living room of the Avengers complex, arms crossed and looking none too happy. 

“Pepper!”

“I'm not even going to ask. You just deal with it as you will.” she handed him an envelope and gestured to the general area of the living room. 

Tony in turn opened the envelope wearily, walking as he read the note inside. 

“Didn't want to take this little parental moment away from you. He's all yours.” - Strange.

And that's when he rounded the pillars just outside the living room to see what had Pepper so done with him. 

Oh.

_ Oh…. Oh fuck… _

And there Felix was, wearing what looked to be a child’s iron man emblazoned t-shirt just chilling on a corner armchair in a nest of half cushions and half pillow stuffing. 

He squawked loudly. 

He froze for a fraction longer before turning on his heels out of the living room.

“PETER PARKER GET YOUR BUTT OVER HERE  _ NOW _ !” 

And from somewhere in the opposite side of the complex Nat and Bruce nearly fell out of their chair laughing as they watched the scene play out.

This was  _ so  _ going in the blackmail archives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * Little reference to one of the works in the series!


	4. Nightmare 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: flashbacks and torture

He could tell he was toeing the line into hyperventilation, but pride be damned, the rest of the team would just have to watch him fall apart because right now he had more important things to take care of. Things like _breathing,_ something his body seemed to have forgotten how to do.

He couldn't breathe!

“Tony” he didn't really hear it the first time.

They second time was better. The second time sounded familiar.

“ _Tony_ ” so, so familiar…?

But it was overpowered by something bigger. Something much much stronger.

 _“Pull yourself together!”_ He winced willing himself, against all that his mind was trying to do, to ground himself back into reality.

 _“Pathetic. How are they going to see you now?”_ It was Howard’s voice. _Always_ Howard's voice. The one power that was greater than his own mind.

“Yeah?” He'd showed them enough already.

“You okay?” Steve asked, wide eyed in concern.

_“It's never concern, boy. Just hidden pity” he could still remember the vice grip Howard had on his arm as he hissed the words into Tony’s face._

“Fine. I'm fine. Do we have anything else to go on?”

Steve stared a moment longer, deciding not to comment on the sudden paleness and cold sweat  before answering.

“Nothing else for now. All we know is that someone has Peter. They haven't given any grounds for random or any wants.”

Tony nodded, outright ignoring the concerned stares from Nat and Bruce.

“I'm sure he's fine” the lie felt like poison in his mouth.

“Probably just some punk who wants to make some easy money” Steve and Bucky shared a knowing look.

“And besi-” the sudden high pitched electric shriek cut through what Tony was saying, sending everyone scrambling to cover their ears.

And then it stopped abruptly, proceeded by the flickering of the large mission room screen at the front of the room.

_Deja vu…_

It focused within moments, screen suddenly jolting as though the camera itself was moving.

All eyes were glued to the screen as the camera continued to move, down what looked to be a dingy hallway towards a heavy duty door at the very end of the grimy hall.

And once the door was opened and the camera  was put back in focus, no one was prepared for what they saw.

 _Especially_ Tony.

He was for sure on the brink of a heart attack the moment his brain absorbed the picture before him.

Even Bucky looked taken aback, jaw set as anger began to bloom. “I'm sure I don't have to introduce you all” the mystery voice behind the camera spoke, tapping Peter gently on the cheek.

Peter in turn recoiled, trying his best to get as far away from the man as he could while his hands and legs remained tied onto the metal chair.

Tony could feel the cold spreading through his veins like ice.

“He's such a good kid, isn't he?” the voice continued.

“Hasn't given _anything_ away yet. Normal eighteen year olds would be shitting themselves by now.”

Tony didn't miss the terror in those wide chocolate brown eyes.

“But I'll get it soon. Pull it out of him. He just needs a bit of extra incentive.” The man made his way to the back of the chair as Peter struggled, trying to untie himself in vain.

“Because I feel like some kids end up being so much like those around them. Parents. Friends. _Guardians_ ” Tony inhaled a sharp breath, heart rate picking up.

“Even geniuses cave in eventually. Isn't that right, Mr. Stark?”

The tension in the room was palpable.

“So consider it a live experiment. Let's see how far you can push a spider until it breaks.”

And with that the camera began moving again, intermingling with some sort of black fabric.

The camera returned to the front of the chair showing off the black sack that was put over Peter’s head.

He was clad in a red long sleeve SI shirt and jeans, shoes and socks missing from the equation.

And without any hesitation, a bucket of water was suddenly at eye level with Peter, held by another unseen person.

“You lasted for about three days if I'm not mistaken. I'm hoping he'll last some more.

The new person pulled Peter back by the sack, positioning his head so that it was angled nearly 180 degrees. And within the blink of an eye a large bucket of ice cold water was crashing down on Peter's face making it impossible to breath as he writhed.

“Where does Stark keep the unsold weapons?” the man waited a moment before peeling the sack back giving Peter an opportunity to breathe before pressing the drenched sack back over his nose and mouth.

“Where does Stark keep unsold weapons?” he repeated, waiting double the time he did before.

“I don't know!” he struggled as the sack went back on.

Another bucket was poured.

“Please-”

It was all it took to send Tony’s brain into overdrive.

_It was like he was in Afghanistan all over again._

_He couldn't breathe…_

_Back in the too cold cave waiting with panicked breaths for the footsteps of the men with the cold dead eyes who would inevitably barge in and drag Tony out ,kicking and screaming, towards the special room._

_The room with the drains in the floor to collect the water he'd cough up for hours on end as they took turns dunking him into the freezing cold basin._

_Over and over and over again until he'd fall into the comfortable embrace of unconsciousness hoping against all odds that he wouldn't wake up._

_Never ever again._

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry! I know it's been really fluffy so far. I figured I should have at least 1 serious chapter so here it is!


	5. Nightmare 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angst. Loads of Howard's A+ parenting and maybe, just maybe a happy ending?

It took five days for SHIELD to track down where exactly it was that Peter was being held captive. 

Five stressingly mind numbing sleepless nights before Tony blasted off on his suits towards the given location without a single look back. 

Hill’s orders to prepare for a uniformed attack on the compound didn't even register in his mind as he sped out of the mission room, cursing his suit for not being faster. 

Not fast enough. It had been  _ five  _ days without knowing what sort of condition Peter was in and his suit wasn't getting to where he needed it to be on time. 

_ “Yet another fuck up. Can you actually do anything right?”  _ And for the first time in decades, Tony couldn't help but agree as his mind was pulling itself apart from worry. 

This was on him. It was  _ his _ fault. Howard wasn't too off mark after all. 

He pushed on to the fastest his suit could go, willing it to be  _ just  _ a little bit faster for god sakes. 

Tony knew he wasn't perfect but God forbid if the kid was hurt o-or dea-. 

His eyes began to sting, mind unwilling to even  _ consider  _ the possibility that he might be too late. 

He wouldn't be able to shoulder the guilt…

“ _ What did I tell you? I told you not to get too close. Look at me boy. No one stays forever _

_ Everyone leaves eventually. You're better off alone.”  _ he shook his head, clenching and unclenching his jaw as that particular memory swam into view. 

Howard had been drinking, more than usual that night. The day Tony had come back from school heartbroken as he learned the painful lesson in the form of what he thought to be friendship actually turning out to be one big practical joke. He locked himself in his room for hours, half furious at the laughter paid in his expense and half dazed at just how cruel people could be. And then Howard had come home, wreaking of liqueur as he all but smashed down Tony’s door to find the boy red eyed at his desk doing what looked to be calculus homework. 

It had taken a slurred question and no response for Howard to unleash his fury, throwing everything off of the table in blind rage. Tony by that point had learned. Sometimes silence was better than any response so that's what he had done. Stared into the space in front of him as his papers, books, and other stationary went sailing into the air, noise all too loud. 

It had been one of the many nights where he promised himself to be better. To do better. To be anything  _ but  _ Howard. But looking at the situation now, he had failed. He wasn't there when Peter needed him. He hadn't be smart enough. Fast enough.  _ Anything  _ enough to bring the boy back from the utter hell he was probably in. 

Was he still waiting? Had he stopped? 

Both answers tore his heart in separate directions punching the air out of him.

Was he too late?

The ink black thoughts swirled around his mind like the chasm he got everyone to believe his heart was, pulling everything in its path to death.

But he flew on, steadily ignoring JARVIS and his warnings about  _ abnormally high heart rates  _ and  _ fuel usage. _ He  _ definitely  _ ignored the fact that he had no plan of attack whatsoever, armed only with the suit and a coms piece yelling in his ear to  _ wait for backup _ . 

But in all honesty he couldn't say he really cared. Plan or no plan, he'd blow the place to pieces(after he got Peter out). And so with that resolve, Tony all but blasted the windows in at the building he was informed was holding Peter. Blasted and then flew in, opening fire on all the black clad hired muscle. 

While SHIELD didn't approve of murder per say, he knew Fury would let it slide in certain cases, and lucky for every piece of shit in the building he elected to decide that this situation warranted death. 

\----

The rest of the team arrived moments later, following the path of destruction down the stairs into the basement where the grimy walls were splattered red. 

Steve winced, taking it all in. 

“SHIELD we need an emergency medivac ready to leave on the roof. ETA less than ten minutes. Multiple casualties. Iron Man is radio silent. Over.” 

“Affirmative Captain, emergency Medivac headed your way. Over.”

They crept forward down the grimy hall they had seen in the video, on edge from the silence before the door at the end of the hall slammed open. 

Widow and Barnes had guns drawn within seconds, dropping them only when Tony pulled his face plate up. 

“He's not waking up.” No one missed the panic laced in his voice. 

Bruce ran over, checking for a pulse from the shivering drenched teen. 

“He's breathing.” 

Steve let out a breath. 

“But he's burning up. Get him to the roof. Medivac should be here.” Tony didn't wait one second before blasting up the stairs to the roof leaving the team to clean up and capture the remaining. Those who were left alive anyways. 

\---

It had been six hours since they had raided the building, capturing the brains behind the  _ horrible  _ kidnapping. Some sort of middleman for terrorists in the arms business. 

Not so surprising. 

What  _ was  _ surprising was what came out of the interrogation. 

Peter hadn't said a word. Not a single word, which would have been less spectacular if it was true that he didn't know where SHIELD had kept the remaining SI weapons. 

The official story had been that they'd been secretly destroyed, all of them launched and used up hundreds of miles in the desert somewhere. 

But Natasha knew that wasn't the truth. 

The  _ truth  _ was that there were crates upon crates of weapons under the London Sanctum that Strange had agreed to keep and protect.

Strange had also informed Tony that Peter had somehow managed to get a glimpse of the war room before turning around and deciding to mess around with the location windows instead. Something that seemed more forgivable to the teen in the long run. 

He had known all along, even if he wasn't 100% sure, but hadn't uttered a single word, having 100% faith that Tony and the others would show up and get him out eventually. 

It ate at Tony’s gut. 

It shouldn't have ever happened. And as he kept vigil over Peter’s unconscious and feverish form in the cool darkness of the infirmary he made new plans. New plans for his suit. Peter’s suit. The team’s weaponry. The safety of the complex. Made a list of every single thing to upgrade as to make sure  _ nothing  _ like this would happen again. 

And somewhere in the numbness of the highlight hours when the rest of the team went to bed he felt something brush against his arm. 

“Did I do it?” the voice was raspy from what Tony could only assume was from too much use. 

“Oh my god!” he nearly fell off of the chair in haste to push the button for the doctor. 

“Peter. Are you okay? Are you hurt? Do you feel dizzy?” the questions splurged out of his mouth as worried eyes ran over the weary face.  _ Far  _ more weary than any teen should be. 

“M’fine” Peter croaked, shifting up with a wince. 

“Peter Parker you better lie back down before I tape you to your bed.” 

He chucked, groaning as his ribs twinged in pain. 

The lights flooded on as the doctor rushed in, followed closely by a team of nurses and a cart full of various medicines. 

Tony didn't even notice the lone figure walking behind the medical team. 

“Come on Tony. Get some rest. He'll be fine.” Bruce pulled Tony’s arm gently. 

Tony in turn glanced over to Peter's slowly closing eyes before standing up, wincing at his stiff back. 

The kid was safe. 

Safe and sound and loved as he should be, and against all logical explanations he felt a familiar prickling in his eyes. 

He looked over one last time, watching the deep beeps of sleep on the moniter before he let Bruce guide him out. 

For once in a long time, there was silence in his mind. 

No sharp words or hate being spewed on end. Just silence. 

And the cautious joy of knowing that perhaps, just maybe, he had won. Howard was wrong. 

He was a decent person after all...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY. IT WAS TOO MUCH.   
> I promise the next part will be lighter.


	6. Bully 1

It was nearing half past four in the afternoon and Tony was growing more and more agitated as the seconds ticked by.

And while it was true that he could have just gone out and dragged the teen back to the compound to unleash the “ _ very disappointed in you right now” _ talk to get it over with, he stayed seated, eyes darting around the holographic blue print of a new suit he was working on.

Also, the exasperated talk he'd had with Pepper earlier that week may or may not have had Tony working to strengthen his overall level of patience. 

“He's a teenager, Tony. They do that. It's normal” was the reply Pepper had given him when he griped about Peter being the source of all of the new found grey hair. 

It wasn't that he didn't understand. 

He did. 

He had been a teenager at one point in his life after all. A much  _ much  _ worse teenager, but it didn't change that fact that he was  _ worried.  _

Constantly.

Consistently. 

Almost every day he'd reach a stretch of time where the worry would seep in under his skin. 

And while his worry was valid, the quantity and the utter strength of the worry wasn't so necessary. 

He knew that too. It went up on the long list of “things he knew he did that were killing him slowly”. 

But he just couldn't help it. 

So when four thirty came around he couldn't stop glancing at the clock wondering what exactly it was that caused Peter to be more than an hour late from school when they had made a promise to always come home from school before going out on patrol.

There had been no note or call or text or any sort of reminded for any sort of special occasion from Peter, so there was really no reason for him to be this late…

He swiped the screen clean, deciding to go get a coke and some snacks. 

Snacks were great. 

Not only did they distract him from his worrying, they kept Bruce and Pepper temporarily off his back for forgetting  _ yet again  _ to eat something for breakfast and lunch. He'd settle for some left over Chinese.

He got halfway to one of the bar stools, microwaved plate in one hand and a can of cola in the other before he heard the unmistakable woosh of the elevator doors opening. 

Tony glance flicked over to the new arrival before returning to the food in front of him and before he knew it he felt whiplash from snapping his attention back to where the elevator was closing. 

“Talk.” Barnes nudged Peter gently forward, gripping what looked to be Peter’s school bag. He didn't look like he was planning on letting go anytime soon.

Tony quirked a brow, looking to Bucky for an answer.

Bucky didn't say a word, pinning the teen in place with his unnerving stare. 

There was a beat of tense silence before Barnes reached forward and plucked the black SI cap off of Peter’s head with remarkable speed and agility. And then Tony saw it. 

His eyes widened marginally, mouth straightening out into an almost frown. He wasted no more time before hopping off the stool and making his way to the teen. The very teen who was adamantly trying his best to avoid any and all eye contact. 

He was hunching into himself. 

Tony reached out and brushed the loose hair away from Peter’s face to reveal a nasty looking bruise and swelling forming between just above Peter’s right eyebrow all the way to his temple. And if he was seeing things correctly, which he probably was, there were specks of dried blood around the ear. 

“You want to tell me what this is?” Tony could feel his pulse rising. 

“It's.. It's nothing. Just a small accident. It'll go away in a couple of hours” no one missed the small tremor in his voice.

“Found him mid fight near the school” Bucky stated bluntly. 

Tony's eyes narrowed. 

“I didn't start it. I promise! It was just something stupid. No one got hurt or anything like that.” 

Tony looked back to Bucky who shook his head slightly. 

“I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear any of that. I repeat: What. Happened?” 

Peter squirmed, fiddling with the sleeves of his hoodie. 

“ _ Peter.”  _

“It was four against one. Unprovoked attack. Nat and I lucked out. We just happened to be there to break up the fight.” He sidestepped slightly before latching on to Peter’s left sleeve, jerking it up much to Peter’s surprise. 

“I'm surprised they didn't break his hand.” And lo and behold, a splotchy mix of purples and yellows mixed together to form one large bruise towards his left wrist. 

“Got stomped.” 

“Excuse me?” Tony looked straight affronted. 

“Those kids were ruthless.” 

“Is that why you were late? Because you were in a fight?!” 

Peter didn't respond, choosing instead to stare at the ground. 

“Peter. This is  _ not  _ okay! We talked about this. It doesn't matter that you have crazy healing abilities. These are bullies. You can't just let them do what they want.” Tony rubbed at his eyes. 

“I'm sorry…” Peter mumbled, still picking at his sleeves. 

“No. Not allowed. You are not allowed to apologize for this. For any of this.” 

“Speaking of apologies. Where exactly are those punks Now?” 

Barnes shrugged. 

“Probably back at school. Natasha said she'd straighten out the guardian’s meeting.”

Tony nodded. Nat he could trust. 

“Alright. Well, I guess first step would be to get you checked out.” 

Peter stopped mid open mouth, rebuttals dying on his tongue as Tony shot him a look of disapproval.

“The doctor should be in right now. I expect a full report on my desk within the next two hours.” 

Peter nodded. 

“Can I still go on patrol?” It was said so softly and sounded so unsure. Tony could have sworn he felt his heart clench. 

“We'll see.” He replied blankly, hating himself for a moment when Peter looked more than a little downtrodden at the answer.

“And after you're done, I want to see you in the main gym ready to go.” 

Peter just stared warily. 

“The gym?” 

“You, Peter, are gonna learn how to kick some ass.” if anything, the wariness increased. 

“Because I  _ will not  _ tolerate any civilian caused bruises anymore.”


	7. Bully 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is unconnected to If You Give a Teen a Cookie!  
> .  
> .  
> Italics = text  
> BOLDFACE = articles

“So you're telling me that Peter has been suspended from school because he stood up for himself?” Tony quirked a brow. 

Principal Morita winced, racking his brain for a safe response.

“W-well… technically speaking, although Mr. Parker did not initiate the violence, he did cause some detrimental damage to Mr. Thomson” he rushed the last part just a bit louder than a mumble. 

Tony just stared, judging him silently as he waited for Morita to realize just how ridiculous his reasoning sounded. 

“We did, however, suspend Mr. Flash as well. He'll be serving the same-” 

“So the kid who started the fight gets the same punishment as the kid who tried to defend himself? Are you serious right now?” he slid a manila file over to the headmaster. 

“This is the first time Peter has  _ ever  _ retaliated. Meanwhile Thomson constantly assaulted him. I've seen the CCTV footage, not to mention the fact that two of my co-workers caught the little troll beating Peter up.” He nodded to the folder that sat unopened in front of Morita who was steadily trying to avoid having to open it in the first place. 

“Those are official copies of Peter’s check up after the last fight two days ago. There are photos in there too.” 

Principal Morita gingerly opened the file and then wished he didn't. It took all of his remaining power to not shut the file altogether. 

“Blunt force concussion with a tear in his ear along with a bruised and nearly broken hand and wrist.” Tony didn't even blink as he continued to glare. 

“That kid is a bully. He and his little  _ crew  _ are all bullies. It was a jump. It was a four against one fight, and Peter didn't even lay a finger on them.” The steely tone of disapproval was becoming more clear. 

“I'm sorry Mr. Stark, but it's not that simple…”

Tony rolled his eyes.

“Here, I'll _ make  _ it simple.”

Peter sat back, nerves running. He knew how dangerous Tony could be put under the right circumstances, but this? This was different. 

This wasn't anger. This was Tony’s dad side slowly rearing its head. 

“If you suspend Peter, you automatically suspend all and every STARK Industry partnership. That's including the funding, the equipment, the internships. Everything.” 

Peter’s jaw dropped, eyes widening as his brain finally processed Tony’s words.

“Mr. Stark! That's a little much, isn't It?!” 

“Victim blaming and turning a blind eye to bullying is much worse” he stage whispered. “But go off I guess.” 

Morita sputtered. 

“You don't have to decide right now since it's Friday, but I do expect a call or email by Sunday night.” He stood, straightening his coat. 

“Let's go” Tony patted Peter on the back before turning and making his way out the door. Peter scrambled to follow, shutting the door quietly behind him. 

He'd have to tread softly…

\-----

Peter knew something was wrong the moment the elevator doors wooshed open to the living area. He could  _ feel  _ it. His spidey senses were spiking. But he got off, plodding down the hall towards the kitchen and living room. 

“Peter!” he jumped at the sudden loud outburst from Barton. 

“H-hey!” he replied shakely, eyeing the strangely packed living room. 

“Am I missing something? I'm missing something, aren't I…?”

He plodded over to an empty seat between Rogers and Nat, neither of which took their eyes off of him. 

“Just woke up?” Nat asked conversationally. 

Peter nodded. 

“Did you check your phone?” 

Peter froze.

“Should I have?” 

“Maybe…” Nat shrugged. 

He pulled his phone out of his sweatpants pocket, unlocking the screen to see five missed calls and three text messages from Tony within the last two hours. 

His eyes widened. 

“Shit!” 

“Language.” 

He covered his mouth briefly. “Sorry…” 

Steve nodded. 

“Where's Tony?” 

“In Hong Kong.” Rogers answered. 

Peter took a moment before gingerly tapping the open button, opening the first message.

_ You're on compound lockdown. Stay put. _

Peter quirked a brow. Before opening the second one. 

_ Also, maybe don't read the news today. _

He shot a questioning glance at Bruce who grimaced, shaking his head. 

His fingers hovered over the last message, contemplating on whether or not to click. 

And click he did. 

_ Be good. I'll be back by Monday.  _

The last message threw him for a loop. 

“What happened? Is there something wrong? Is it serious?” he rambled off to no one in particular. 

Cap shared a silent conversation with Nat before handing his phone over to Peter who gingerly took it into his hands. 

He glanced down only to be met with a article and a boldface title.

**Tony Stark Genius, Billionaire, Playboy, Philanthropist, and Dad?!**

His stomach dropped as he saw a grainy paparazzi photo of Tony and Peter getting into the car after the meeting with Principal Morita. 

_ Sources say that Mr. Stark made a personal visit to Parker’s school after a call from the principal about a fight.  _

Peter couldn't take his horrified eyes off the screen. 

_ But who is Peter Parker? Up until yesterday he was just a normal teen, interning with STARK INDUSTRIES. However, it seems that it was a little more than “just business”. _

“Stark’s lawyers got the article taken down since they used a minor’s name.” Bruce explained calmly. 

“But it spread really fast so they can't take it down.” He winced in sympathy. 

Peter simply scrolled down, skimming the article before doing a double take. 

_ Sources also say that Parker was the cause of the sudden drop in STARK INDUSTRY related financial and tech aid. Mr. Stark withdrew all the benefits the school had been receiving through his company after clashing with Principal Morita over a two week suspension sentence in regards to the fight.  _

“Tony got the call this morning saying that Morita was standing by his decision. He withdrew everything before he got on the plane.” Bruce added. 

“It'll be fine though. Give it some time to die down. They'll probably move on to something more interesting by tomorrow.” Steve nodded, accepting the phone Peter handed back. 

He took a moment of silence before abruptly standing, plodding his way out. 

“Where are you going?” Barton asked suspiciously. 

“Back to bed. It's way too early to deal with this.” He shook his head, walking over to the elevator.

“I'll probably be up by dinner.” He added before walking into the elevator. 

“Don't do anything stupid!” Barnes called out genuinely before the doors closed. 

\----

It was the fiftieth article he was reading before he decided that enough was enough. 

Peter couldn't believe the things that were being said. 

Horrible. Rude. And nowhere near the truth. 

**Incapable Parent. Is He Ready?. Ten Reasons Why Tony Stark Should Never Be Allowed to Parent. Take Him Away. Why Sociopaths Should Not Parent. Someone Call CPS.** The list of articles went on, each griping about why they thought that Tony wasn't deserving or ready to be a parent. Why he would be the worst for Peter. It was a whole alphabet. Reason A all the way to Z of why Tony, apparently the most egotistical narcissist in the world would be a terrible choice for anyone let alone a teenager.

The anger began to build. It was one thing to stalk minors in hope of a story. Peter could forgive that.

It was a completely different thing however, for them to dig into Tony’s past and drag him through his imperfections and mistakes while calling him a monster for the person he used to be. The person that was completely foreign to Peter. So he did what he had to do without a single ounce of regret. 

He grabbed a picture that Nat had sent him. She'd taken it one day when she spotted them outside under one of the poolside umbrella tables working on some physics homework. 

Tony was in a pair of jeans and a short sleeve while Peter wore shorts and a SI shirt, both focused on the textbook beside them. 

However, the real finishing touch was the mug sitting innocuously next to Tony’s hand. White with bold black letters reading  **Best Dad Ever** .

He took the picture and attached it to a message to Ned with a short message. 

_ Post this. Make it viral.  _

Was there going to be chaos? Probably. Did he care? Not particularly at that moment. 

He refused to let the Tony bashing go without a fight. He'd show them. 

\---

Peter awoken by a sudden message notification around three in the morning. He groaned, squinting his eyes against the harsh bright screen. And then he almost dropped his phone out of the sheer surprise. 

**I love you too, but you're so grounded when I get back.**

He grinned, rubbing the sleep from his eyes before sending a reply. 

**I take that back. You're such a mean dad.**

The reply was fast.

**It's all fun and games before your dad starts telling embarrassing stories. Check yourself spiderling. I'll see you soon.**

Peter recoiled at the very idea of those possible dad jokes. 

**Love you** .

**Love you too.**


	8. Teenagers 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peter is a month or two shy of 17 in this chapter!

Halfway through the second knock Peter’s resolve began to crack as his anxious mind raced to formulate a reason as to why he was there in the first place, something he should have done before he got to where he was… 

But of course he hadn't. 

And now he was standing before an ex assassin’s door knocking to see if they could possibly perhaps help him with his outrageous plan. Or what was going to be his plan. 

For now he just had one big end goal in mind and needed and expert’s advice for everything else. 

His knuckles barely skimmed the door on its third knock when the door itself began to move, swinging inward as it opened. 

“Hi-um… hello” his hand shot up in a fidgety wave as he tried to form a smile that was looking more and more like a grimace. The ex assassin in turned didn't say a word, standing in between the door crack dressed in a pair of grey joggers and a long sleeve black SI shirt, a sorta first day gift Tony had given him when he arrived at the complex for the first time. 

“I was wondering if you could help me with something…” he was pretty stoked his voice hadn't wavered the entire time under the terrifying stare. 

There was a beat of silence before Bucky swung the door open wider.

“Come on in” he nodded. 

Peter's eyes widened fractionally before he tightened his hold on the papers in his free hand, taking a few shaky steps into the cool semi dark room before Bucky closed the door behind them. 

He followed behind the man as he walked over to a decent sized alcove sitting area with plush seating and a table littered lightly with suspiciously classified looking folders. 

He took a seat, letting the man clean up a little bit, watching in mild interest as the folders went back into a black duffle bag next to where Barnes had seated himself. 

He wasn't scary per say. Peter could see that he was a good person and definitely a different one from the guy he fought in Germany. But he still had the years of training ingrained in his mind and in his blood, so whether he meant to or not, Barnes always had an aura of silent deadly energy around him that tended to set people on edge. 

He was quiet, kind of like Bruce but with the intimidation factor and skills of Natasha and the strength of Cap, and when Peter realized that, he couldn't help but maybe kind of sort of avoid the man in the most discreet way possible. 

But he wouldn't lie. 

Barnes actually terrified him just a little bit and he felt awful for thinking that after seeing how happy Rogers was to have his best friend back, so for the past few weeks he had been making small attempts to try and get to know him better. 

Four weeks to be precise. Four weeks of small conversation and sitting closer and closer to the man. Four weeks of what to the ex assassin was cringeworthy teenage awkwardness. 

But he was pretty cool about it. 

At least, that's what Peter guesses. The man hadn't reacted negatively or uncomfortably to anything Peter had done for the past month. 

And if he had seen correctly, at one point Barnes had sent cap a small smirk after Peter attempted to sit next to the man to watch an unfolding game of poker. 

Bucky had won, unsurprisingly, although Peter couldn't help but feel that he hadn't played completely fair. Not that he could say anything. He didn't really know how to play poker. 

But after the game Barnes had muttered something about memories and punks while Cap just rolled his eyes. 

It had left a curious itch in Peter's brain he hoped to figure out one day, but sitting before the man now in his low-key freezing dimly lit room took that thought to the very bottom of the list of things he wanted to know. 

“I'm sorry for bothering you” Peter blurted, wincing as his brain caught up with his mouth. 

“It's fine” Barnes waved it off with a small smile, amusement glinting in his eyes. 

“What do you need help with?” 

“Well…” 

\----

It was nearing dinner time when Peter finally emerged from the cold cold room only to run right into Nat who masked her surprise scarily well.

He didn't even see the small signal she had apparently sent to Barnes who stepped forward silently before locking Peter’s arms together in a tight brace before he felt pain explode at his neck, while Nat’s voice floated into his ears.

“Sorry, Peter.” 

And out of nowhere his vision began to tunnel as the sounds surrounding him began to get muddled. And within a minute he was unconscious, leaning fully on a bemused looking Barnes. 

“Was that absolutely necessary?” 

“We'll see…But for now, get him to the hellicarrrier. Steve will take it from there.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After the fluff of the last chapter I figured a action packed one was necessary! And I left it on a CLIFFHANGER!   
> MUHAHAHA~ but I promise I'll update soon. Any guesses as to what in the world is happening/will happen? I'll give you a hint: Nick Fury gets personally involved.


	9. Teenagers 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prepare yourselves

Peter awoke to a pounding headache, causing him to low key want to die.  

But not really. Just kind of sort of. Cause he was sure that if he did die Tony would riot. 

_ That  _ would not be pleasant. 

So he talked himself out of metaphorically jumping off a building before blinking his eyes open, only to squeeze them shut against the harsh lighting that happened to be trying to burn him alive with its obnoxious brightness. 

“Ughh” he groaned, fighting off the urge to vomit. 

This situation was becoming eerily similar to the kidnapping that had happened months ago, and the more sober he became the faster his heart began to beat as he struggled against the  _ strangely  _ strong metallic wires cuffing him to the steel chair. 

He was  _ not  _ about to have a kidnapping part 2. Especially with his mission at stake. This was  _ not  _ going to happen. 

So, with all the energy he had left the struggled, only getting so far until he realized something odd. Something was way odd. 

Wasn't he at the compound with everyone? 

He'd had a full out briefing with Barnes before… before..? Before he was tranqed by Widow??? 

That certainly made no sense. He had been doubled teamed against by both Widow and Barnes. 

But why? Was there a secret splintering happening inside the AVENGERS again? 

They wouldn't… 

They wouldn't go as far as kill him. 

Would they? 

Different thoughts screamed at him from different parts of his still drug addled brain, upping the pain until they were silenced by a sudden explosion. 

Or he'd thought. 

All at once the lights flooded on around him, illuminating a whole cave with rocks and everything. But it was high tech. Kinda like Tony’s workshop but inside a cave and  _ definitely  _ more minimalistic. 

So a rich guy? 

“Wilson! What the fuck?!” he'd heard that voice before… definitely familiar. 

And then he spotted said voice, speeding down the stairs, clad in what looked to be a black tracksuit. 

Somehow, he wasn't as surprised as he thought he would be….

Peter whipped his head around as far back as it could go only to find yet another familiar face. 

“Wade?!” 

“Spidey! You remember me!” 

“You sent me home with a  _ coyote!”  _

_ “ _ Was his name Bruce?” tracksuit asked. 

“Yes, it was, Damian. Thanks for the help?” Peter snarked. 

“Hmmm... “ Damian nodded, coming to rest next to the tied up teen.

“Jason was pretty pissed you lost Bruce”. He addressed Wilson casually. 

“What the fuck is going on?!” Peter exclaimed, eyes widening momentarily as he realized what he had said. 

“Sorry. Language.” He winced. 

Damian and Wilson stared in disbelief. 

“Ignoring the fact you just said that” Wilson walked around to stand next to Damian. “I'm glad you're awake” he turned to the small menace beside him. “I told you it would work.” 

“I told you to bring him here I never said to tie him up like a villain!”

Wilson shrugged. 

“Meh. Just wanted to see how it felt to be on the other side.” 

“They work for  _ you?!”  _ Peter butted in. 

“If by  _ they  _ you mean your Russian assassins, no. They don't work for me. We're all just playing the middleman here.”

“Middleman?” 

“Yes.” 

“For Who?” 

“Now why would we tell you that?” 

“Touche…” Peter nodded in acceptance. 

“So someone wanted me kidnapped?” 

“Not particularly.” 

Peter quirked a brow.

“They wanted to make sure you got to where you needed to go without any health complications.”

“Hey, sorry to butt in” Wilson interluded, sending off a short message on his phone. 

“I gotta go. Skulls to crush and all that.” 

Damian nodded in understanding. 

“You were never here.” 

“For sure.” He replied bounding up the stairs. 

“Say sorry to Alfred for me. He should be waking up in a few hours. Thank GOD the man didn't drink all the tea” he waved before shutting the door behind him. 

“As I was saying.” Damian began to pace around the chair. 

“Someone needed you at a location safe and sound. Very preferably alive.” 

“You said  _ health complications? _ ” 

“Ah, yes. It was very important. Even highlighted in the instructions.”

“Why would there be health complications? I'm where they wanted me, aren't I?” 

Damian chucked, sending shivers down Peter's spine.  _ Not good.  _

“I'm afraid not, Parker.”

“Wait, what?!” He hadn't noticed it, but the boy hadn't come back around in his pacing circle. 

“Damian. DEMIAN! What the-” 

He was cut off by a sudden flash of white fluttering in front of his eyes before he was breathing in chemicals. 

_ Bad chemicals _ . 

Chemicals of the  _ not fun  _ variety _.  _

He struggled before blacking out, slumping in his seat as Damian removed the cloth. 

Thank God for Todd’s emergency chloroform. He fixed his jacket before untying the unconscious teen, letting him slump to the floor before he dragged the limp body backwards towards the jet black light craft emblazoned with the WayneCorp logo. 

Bruce was out on a business meeting in India, so what he didn't know would probably not hurt him.

Not too much anyways….

\----

Peter woke up for the second time in considerably more pain than he was in the first time around. 

But this time he was free to roll over the side of wherever he was put uncuffed, thankfully, to puke up his guts out along with the little water he had imbibed hours earlier. 

“Fuuuuu-” Peter groaned keeping his eyes shut. 

Not this time. 

Those lights were  _ not  _ getting him this time around. 

“I see that Rogers hasn't been doing a good job in regards to cutting down the team’s expletive usage.” 

Peter’s eyes snapped open. 

_ No flipping way. _

“I am glad, however, that you made it here in one piece, Mr. Parker.”

“I am  _ totally  _ high right now or something…” 

Fury nodded in acceptance. 

“I certainly hope you aren't.”

There was silence before Fury handed him a familiar looking manila folder.

“Wait a minute… this was-”

“In Mr. Barnes’ possession?” 

Peter just stared. 

“As it should have been. But now it's being returned to you.”

Peter stared, not wanted to touch said object. For how his day had been, he was half sure it was coated in some sort of poison or something..  

“it's not going to kill you. That would defeat the point of this whole plan.” 

He tossed the file next to Peter who flinched slightly but didn't take his eyes off of Fury who was lounging comfortably in front of him on an armchair. 

“You might want to take a look. You don't have much time” Fury glanced over Peter’s shoulder at a clock mounted on the wall. 

“You've got about an hour and a half before you need to be out there.”

“Out...there…?” 

“On the stage.”

“Excuse Me?” 

“Is this not ringing a bell? I'm sure you've discussed this with Barnes.” 

“How do you know th-”

“Because I assigned Barnes to get you to get him to help you.” 

Peter sat in stunned silence for a solid minute. 

“I also assigned Romanov to help Barnes. And Rogers too.” 

“How did you-”

“You came to me roughly three months ago, if you don't remember. Something about getting some paperwork signed.” 

Peter's has dropped as he stared in awed terror.” 

“And everything following was you? 

Fury nodded. 

“The meeting I had with Barnes. That was You?” 

He nodded. 

“You knew I'd awkwardly try and get close to him for a whole  _ three months?!”  _

“To be fair, Romanov and I thought it would be for four.” 

“That doesn't make me feel any better!” Peter sputtered indignantly.

Fury shrugged. 

“You're here now and that's what matters. This was  _ your  _ end goal.” 

Peter didn't respond, still trying to wrap his head around the  _ ridiculously  _ intuitive and  _ very  _ terrifying abilities that Fury possessed. 

This was  _ nowhere  _ what he thought his plan would be. 

Fury stood, snapping Peter out of his thoughts. 

“An hour and twenty minutes now.” He headed towards the door.

“Oh” he turned momentarily. 

“You're responsible for getting back. I'm sure the Japanese officials would be more than happy to assist you if your plan doesn't work out.” 

And with that he walked out, closing the door quietly behind him leaving Peter in silence. 

Peter in turn waited a whole two minutes before diving in to reading the file.

\----

Stage one was easy. It was a simple in and out accompanied by a flash of his fake ID lanyard at some huge man who looked more than capable of snapping Peter’s neck with one hand. 

He quickly dismissed the thought before hurrying on, trying not to glance around too much. 

The file had warned him that any overtly suspicious action would have him thrown out and stranded in the middle of Tokyo, something he very much did not want. 

So he kept walking, clipboard in one hand head held high as he strutted his stuff. 

What was it that Tony had told him at the one and only press conference he had attended? “Walk like you own the place. No one will ask questions.”

He repeated that in his head as he took a sharp left, having memorized the blueprints of the place. 

A few more steps aaaaand.

“Here's your mic sir. We’ll be on in sixty seconds” 

Peter nodded, going for a winning smile before being ushered through a set of heavy doors which closed behind him. 

He didn't hesitate to quietly lock it before rushing up the short staircase Just behind the curtain. He waited a few more seconds before being given the green light to enter. 

And with all the frazzled nerves and courage he could muster, he walked out on to the bright stage to roaring applause. 

Peter paused to adjust his bowtie and jacket before moving forward. 

It took a moment for the cheering to die down, but it was all the time he needed to look down at his clipboard and find new resolve to continue. 

“Hello ladies and gentlemen. Thank you so much for joining us today here in Tokyo to kick off this year's STARK Expo.” He gave the crowd a moment before continuing. 

“I'd like to invite you all in welcoming here on Stage, the man, the genius himself, Tony Stark everyone!” The crowd erupted in cheers and applause as Stark did indeed appear from the opposite entrance, shooting a confused look towards Peter but cleaning up with his ever present Stark charisma and charm. 

He waved and bowed and ate up the cheers for a solid few minutes before the crowd settled down. He moved on to meet Peter on the middle of the stage, pulling his hand shake into a hug. “What is this?” he hissed through a smile. 

“You'll see.” Peter responded pulling back. 

“And now, ladies and gentlemen, before we really kick this expo off I do apologize, I'll need to give some extra information regarding this year's expo.” Tony narrowed his eyes in suspicion, shooting Peter a hard stare. 

“Contrary to popular belief, Tony here is actually the main designer behind the whole expo. Being the perfectionist that he is, he's the one who planned everything.” the crowd gave a few chuckles. 

“That being said, he hasn't actually been home in like a month or so, which is probably super tiring” Peter paused before continuing. 

“So you'll just have to excuse him for any sarcastic comments or emotional outbursts that may occur.” the crowd chuckled goodnaturedly. 

“Also! Before we begin, I just wanted to wish Mr. Stark a happy father's day.” Peter slung an arm around Tony. 

“He probably doesn't know this because, as I said, he hasn't been home in over a month. In addition to being a genius, billionaire, playboy(not really any more), philanthropist, he got to add  _ father  _ to his impressive list.” 

And for a second there was absolute silence before the crowd erupted in applause, some going as far as giving him a standing ovation. 

Tony’s eyes widened as he caught a glimpse of the paper on Peter’s clipboard. 

“So yeah, if you all would join Me, Peter Stark neè Parker in congratulating  _ my  _ dad.” He held up the clipboard with the signed adoption papers up so that Tony could see before pulling him into a hug. 

“Your secretary didn't tell You, but you signed off on it three months ago. I just needed to find the right time to tell you” Peter said.

“Three  _ months  _ later?!” Tony still sounded vaguely stunned but returned the hug. 

Peter laughed before pulling away.

“Sorry about that everyone. I guess dramatics runs in the family. You're all hearing about it for the first time he is.” 

They all laughed. 

He straightened his suit before continuing. 

“Now, the moment you've all been waiting for” the room darkened as the screens dimmed 

“STARK Industries officially welcomes you to the kick off of STARK Expo!” confetti rained down as stage fireworks lit up the room. 

He took his leave there, marching down the stairs and unlocking the door before being manhandled away from the area by angry looking security leaving a  _ very  _ confused presenter behind. 

\----

It was nearing two in the morning before he was ushered out of his cell to stand before a particularly exhausted Tony Stark. 

“I don't know whether to be angry or impressed so I'll go for both.” He nodded at the officers who uncuffed Peter, leaving him standing awkwardly to the side as Tony filled out the paperwork. 

“You have  _ so  _ much explaining to do.” He motioned for Peter to follow him as he made his way to the expensive car parked outside the police station. 

He pulled Peter in for a surprise hug before holding him out at arms length.

“I love you, but if you pull  _ anything  _ like that again, you're gonna be grounded for  _ life.”  _

Peter couldn't help the explosive laughter. 

“Hey! It's not funny. I'm positive I saw Nat in the crowd. She probably has so many blackmail worthy pictures!” 

“It can't be that bad.” Peter responded between breaths of laughter. 

“I cried, Peter. In front of thousands of people and on  _ live  _ television.” He sounded so serious. 

“You cried?” Peter couldn't help the questioning tone. 

“But why?” 

“Peter! I was told that the kid I was trying to adopt for over a  _ year  _ agreed to being my kid.” 

Peter was struck speechless. 

“I wanted it so bad but I didn't know if you'd want that. I wanted you to decide. And you  _ did!”  _

_ “ _ W-why would I say no?” 

Tony scoffed before plopping on the sidewalk next to the car. 

Peter followed. 

“You've read the articles. You've seen me at work. I'm not exactly a family man. I can barely do the minimum in terms of parental actions. I'm always busy. I've been gone for like  _ two months _ .” 

Peter paused a moment before speaking. 

“Those articles from last year? After the whole suspension thing? Those were tabloids. They write stupid things all the time.” Peter turned to face Tony who could bring himself to face back. 

“You've been at every single parent teacher conference and most of my competitions. You know my school schedule better than I do. You even chaperoned a field trip at one point.” 

“The field trip was at STARK Industries” Tony shrugged it off. 

“You cancelled the entire first day of your showcase in London!” Peter admonished. 

Tony rubbed at his eyes. 

“What I'm saying is that you aren't as horrible a person as you think you are. Like super super opposite.” 

Peter clamped on to Tony’s arm. 

“I meant what I said to those reporters when the whole suspension thing happened. You really truly are one of the most amazing people in the world and that I know you care about the people in your life more than they could ever ever imagine.” Tony gave Peter a side glance through his visibly red rimmed eyes. 

“I thought someone was pulling a prank when that adoption document got to me. And then I asked Fury and he validated it and I was so mindblowingly excited. Like, I freaked out. I also may or may not have broken a few vases from my excitement but that's a whole different story.”

Tony chuckled.

“My point is, I was and am so so  _ so  _ happy that you chose this. And i'm beyond thankful as well. You're honestly my biggest hero and mentor and I'm so honored to be able to share your name.” He pulled Tony into a hug that the man willingly reciprocated before pulling away and standing up to dust himself off. 

“As much as I love the emotional ooey gooey, we're gonna have to put a comma there because it's Sunday morning and you have school tomorrow.” 

Peter groaned. 

“Being adopted doesn't warrant a day off?” 

Tony smiled. 

“we'll see. Get in. We're definitely going home though. I'm sure Pepper can handle the expo without me.” 

Peter obliged, slipping in to the front seat before buckling himself in. 

“Tony put the car into gear and shot off at a probably highly illegal speed towards the airport. 

“So tell me. How did you get all the way here?”

“Well , funny story….” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OH MY GOD I'M SO SORRY FOR THE FEELS. BUT TONY STARK 100% DESERVES TO BE LOVED LIKE THE AWESOME FATHER HE IS.  
> Also, just imagine the grey hair he'll get listening to how the whole plan unfolded*cough* Peter got drugged twice *cough*


	10. To Dye or not to Dye 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter(part 1 and 2) of this work!

“So what you are saying is that you would like to apply for asylum here in Wakanda, correct?” 

T’Challa couldn't help the sigh that escaped. It was  _ far  _ too early in the morning for this…

“N-not like  _ forever _ . Just maybe sort of kind of a week or two? Just until he calms down enough to approach the situation reasonably.” Peter shuffled in place, looking everywhere but at the bemused king’s face. He couldn't help but fiddle with the sleeve of his hoodie. 

T’Challa sat in silence, observing the young man before him, clad in dark jeans and a thick hoodie that was certainly not suited for Wakanda’s warm weather.

But of course… it was winter in New York. 

He didn't miss the scrappy duffle bag Parker held loosely in his hand, trying his best to make it as invisible as it could be behind his lithe frame. 

“So tell me. What did you do to make the man of Iron so….angry?” 

Peter’s eyes widened in slight terror as he recalled the last 48 hours. 

“Well…-” 

“Peter!” he barely had time to look back before being high fived on the face as he didn't get his hand up in time.

There was a resounding slap through the throne room as T’Challa stared in mild shock. 

“Shuri!” Peter recovered quickly, going in for a hug.

“You could have called or something! You missed  _ the funniest  _ thing.” 

Peter winced. 

“Well, surprise!” he tried for a grin.

Shuri quirked a brow, looking between Peter’s grimace and T’Challa’s bemused expression.

Interesting… 

He looked more bemused than normal. 

“You fucked up, didn't you…” 

“Shuri! Language!” 

“Oh please. You'll start growing blonde hair like that man with the shield if you keep that up.” She fired back ryley.

“Actually...yes?” Peter bit his lip, eyes widening in a puppy dog manner. 

“What did you do?” T’Challa asked, half in horror and half in morbid fascination. 

If he was a friend of Shuri’s, he was smart. And there was no telling how big of a mess up smart people could create. 

It was mind boggling at times…. 

“You remember that new thing you made as a gift for the certain person” he began cryptically. 

“Yeah…?”

“Well, remember how I was like, wow it would be super awesome to try to make different shades?” 

Shuri nodded. She could sense which direction this was going, and certainly hoped he had brought back video footage. 

T’Challa listened, not liking the necessity of being so cryptic. Being cryptic meant that there was something worth hiding, and that never tended to hide well. 

“And remember how it took forever to make the newer shades so we got bored and then we snuck into the kitchen and had a little party?” 

Shuri tried her best to keep the smile off her face. 

“You were  _ so  _ wasted. I still have all the videos saved.” 

Peter blushed. 

“And then there was a super emergency and I had to leave really early.” Shuri nodded. 

“You forgot to take a bottle.” 

“Exactly.” Peter winced. 

Shuri gasped, eyes widening in disbelief as the implications of Peter’s actions hit home. 

“You gave Stark one of the bottles?!” 

“He was busy so I just put it in his shower. I thought I left a note but I found it stuck to my jacket later…” 

“Oh my goodness.” She face palmed. 

“I know….” 

There was a beat of silence.

“Did it work?” 

T’Challa quirked a brow as Peter lit up, grin stretching across his face, infecting Shuri with the same terrifying energy. 

“Totally! His hair is redder than Widow’s.”

They shared a high five before Peter unlocked his phone to go through the various photos he'd managed to take of a redheaded Tony looking murderous. 

“I asked Bucky for a favor because he said he left something here so I tagged along.” Peter turned to address T’Challa. 

“So Stark does not know you are here?” 

Peter nodded vigorously before his phone pingged, alerting him of a message. 

He swiped to open before paling. “Oh my god…” 

“What is it?” T’Challa questioned seriously. 

“Bucky said that Bruce accidentally told Tony that I was with him so Tony just left the complex. He's flying over here right now.” Peter’s eyes widened in horror. 

“I'm so dead.” 

T’Challa took a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose. 

“Shuri, get him down to your lab or something. I'll talk to Stark.” 

Peter grinned before sprinting to where T’Challa sat to give him a hug before realizing what he had done. 

“Oh my god. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to… that was stupid of me” he looked back at Shuri in horror who was too busy busting a gut laughing at the surprise on her brother’s face. 

She grabbed on to his hoodie, pulling him none too gently towards the hall, dragging his duffle behind. 

“Peter followed unconsciously, still in turmoil over the sudden emotional storm. 

“I'm so sorry again!” he called from the door before Shuri all but tossed him out, waving a goodbye before shutting the door quietly behind her. 

“Oh my god… I assaulted a king…” he muttered in terror, following her down the hall to the lift.

“That's right.  _ But did you die?” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> But did you die????  
> Ps. Im up for any sort of challenge/Prompt/work you'd like to see.  
> Comment or message me on Tumblr  
> @ chaoticmobili (You should see a moomin as my propic)


	11. To Dye or not to Dye 2

Tony didn't actually show up until the next morning, something about mandatory foreign plant visits. 

Peter had a sneaking suspicion that Pepper had something to do with that. He made a mental note to get her some flowers later. 

But that was for way later, later as in, the future if Tony didn't end up killing him.

Something he was pretty sure was going to happen when he was awaken to a shrill whistle somewhere to his vague left side. Which was strange because he was positive he fell asleep up in the rafters of Shuri’s lab.

He opened his groggy eyes slowly, getting his bearings straight before nearly falling off the rafters altogether. 

There at his left was Tony, hovering in his suit looking more than a little bemused. 

“You're here!” he tried to wipe the grimace of his face. 

“I am. And you're grounded.” tony's eyes narrowed. 

“And you better hope to Thor that this color comes out today because if I have to go to the expo in Korea with red hair tomorrow, I will end you.” 

All the while Shuri watched from behind a corner, making sure to get everything on camera. 

Peter chuckled in a terrified manner. 

“This might not be the best time to say, but, at least you don't have any more grey hair!” 

And in that moment, Tony really looked deep into his internal self and asked himself 

What the  _ actual  _ fuck…?


End file.
